Kai and Tala watched as the village people walked away without give them a second glance. They looked at each other before Kai let off a sigh and slid to the ground from the tree branch. "We're not actually going to go are we, the suns going to be setting in an hour," Tala said watching Kai. Kai turned and looked up at him.

"We don't have a choice, do we?" he asked him.

"But we don't even know where we're going! What if we get lost and starve out here, or attacked by wild animals?" Tala asked. Kai rolled his eyes and started walking away from Tala.

"We'll just have to go find Ray then, wont we," he said heading in the direction Ray had been running when he left. Tala let out an angry groan and slid out of the tree running a little to catch up to Kai.

"But Ray ran away! He's probably too far away for us to even hope to find now! Plus he's mad at us, and it would be awkward!" Tala whined trying desperately to get Kai to stay where they were until morning. He felt safer by the village, even if the people did hate them now.

Kai stopped walking abruptly, almost making Tala run into him, and turned around looking Tala in the eyes a little angrily. "First of all, I'm not doing what you want to do anymore. Letting you take the lead was what got us into this mess in the first place, so I'm doing what I want now," Kai started sounding very angry. "Second, I know Ray way better than you and I know for a fact that he hasn't gone far. He might have seemed angry but I know he expects someone to come looking for him, so he's probably just up here a little ways. Third, I don't care if it's going to be awkward. We need Ray in order to get out of this forest, and Ray needs someone with him. I don't want him to be alone, and I know he doesn't want to be alone either. Besides, if we wait until tomorrow it might really be too late and he'll have left. Then we're screwed."

Tala watched as Kai turned his back to him and started walking away again. "You don't have to come if you don't want to, but just remember that you're screwed if you don't fallow," Kai told Tala sounding a little less annoyed now. Tala smiled to himself and caught up to Kai again.

"You're finally starting to sound like your old self," he told him a little cheerfully. "I'm just sorry I had to screw things up more for it to happen."

"Hn," Kai answered walking a little faster now.

"Although I did like being the leader for a while," Tala said with a sigh. "Oh well, I can never hope to be a better leader than you anyways." Kai turned his head and looked at Tala with a raised eyebrow. Tala grinned at him and laughed.

"You're a very strange kid," Kai said plainly.

"I am not a kid!" Tala whined. Kai didn't say anything back. He just shook his head and stuffed his hands in his pockets, ignoring Tala.

Kai and Tala walked for, what seemed to Tala was hours, but was really only a few minutes. The forest was making it seem darker out than it actually was, and there was a cool breeze blowing the tree tops making a rustling sound. It was very quiet, besides that rustling, and the odd crack of a twig snapping under their feet, which made Tala jump a little every time he heard it. After a few minutes Tala stopped walking and flung his hand out to stop Kai. Kai glared at him and was about to ask what was wrong, but Tala put a finger to his lips and looked away. Kai let glared thinking Tala was just playing around so they could stop to rest, but then Kai heard what he thought made Tala stop.

There was a quiet sniff coming from somewhere beside them, and the sound a beyblade spinning and slamming into something. Tala turned and started walking slowly and quietly in the direction of the noise. Kai let out an angry sigh. "He's not a wild animal, he's not going to run away if he hears you," he told Tala walking quickly past him. Tala reached out to stop him, but Kai brushed his hand away and kept going. Tala let out a groan and followed behind him quietly.

They found the place the noise was coming from, and stopped a few feet away looking at Ray. Ray glanced over at them for a second before turning his back to them, wiping his eyes on his shirt, and letting Digger spin beside him. Tala watched him for a few seconds before taking a step forward, making a twig snap, and before he knew what was happening Kai was pulling him into his arms and something was flying past his head. Kai moved to let go of Tala, but before he got the chance he'd needed to duck, pulling Tala with him, as Ray's blade came flying back at them from behind. Kai watched as it landed beside Ray again, spinning on the spot. "What the hell was that for?" Tala yelled forcing himself out of Kai's arms, and standing up again. Ray didn't say anything, he just made Drigger go after him, aiming at his feet this time, making him have to step quickly out of the way. "I told you coming after him was a bad idea! He wants to kill me!" Tala yelled hiding behind Kai.

Drigger stopped as soon as Tala had started to use Kai as a shield. It stopped at Kai's feet and slowed down to a stop. Tala stepped out from behind Kai, and Kai picked up Drigger. He walked over to Ray, but Ray didn't look at him. He placed Drigger back beside him, and walked a few steps away before sitting down against a nearby tree. Tala watched Kai until he was sitting down, and then moved and sat on the side of him farthest from Ray.

The three boys sat quietly for a few long minutes before anyone spoke. "Did you really come after me, or did you just start walking, realized you were lost, heard me and came over?" Ray asked them.

"Why does it matter?" Kai asked. "We came to find you, didn't we?"

"It matters, because if it's the second one I'll leave you guys in the middle of the night when you can't see to walk without bumping into trees," he told him through clenched teeth.

"I told you he was mad at us," Tala told Kai. "He doesn't want to see us. He was hoping someone from the village still liked him and came after him." Ray turned his head, glaring and clenched Drigger in his hand.

"Tala, will you just keep quiet for once?" Kai asked him in a deadly tone.

"Why, you mad that I'm telling the truth about the guy that just said getting kicked out of his village was our fault?" Tala asked him. "Because as I recall it wasn't our fault, it was mine and his."

"Does it really matter?" Kai asked him.

"Yes, it does! I don't know if you've noticed, but people are always blaming you for things you didn't do, or were even around to be involved in! Maybe you've just gotten use to it and don't care anymore, but I don't think it's fair! Why should you take the blame for something you didn't do? And how can you still like this guy when he's such a jerk to you?" Tala yelled clenching his fists. Kai let out a sigh and grabbed the clenched hand closest to him so, Ray couldn't see. Tala unclenched his fists slightly, and looked around Kai at Ray.

Ray was leaning against the tree he was by now, with his head resting on it making him look up towards the tree tops. He was clenching Drigger hard, and it looked as if a fresh batch of tears had fallen silently from his eyes. Tala bit his lip and looked away from him, leaning back on the tree and staring down at his lap. He felt a little bad now. "It's true though. The only reason I wanted to come out here was to find him for you so you'd feel better, but so far he hasn't done anything to show he deserves to even talk to you. I don't get what you think is so great about him," Tala mumbled fidgeting with a leaf in his free hand.

"You don't have to get it," Kai told him in a mumbled looking up at the trees.

There was another silence. This one was longer than the last, and was only interrupted by the breeze making its way through the trees. Kai didn't really know what to do or say in the situation he was in. He wanted to go over and talk to Ray but he knew Ray was mad at him, and Tala was now holding his hand back resting slightly on his shoulder. He didn't want to disturb his best friend, but he didn't want Ray to think they were only over here because they'd heard him and were lost. He knew that either way it was a loose for him. Tala and Ray were madder at each other than at him, and if he left Tala he'd get mad at him for choosing Ray when he thought he was being a jerk. But, if Kai didn't go over to talk with Ray then Ray would stay hurt. Kai let out a soft sigh making his decision. He'd stay with Tala, he looked like he was sleeping anyways and Kai really didn't want to disturb him.

The silence and growing darkness started to get to Kai after a few more minutes. It made him check beside him, where Ray was, every once in a while to make sure he was still there. And every time he looked over and saw even just Ray's outline it made him feel a little more relieved. His mind was completely off Tala now, and was just focusing on making sure Ray wasn't getting up to run off on them. It was true that they needed Ray to stay so they could get out of the forest and back to civilization, but Kai also wanted Ray to stay just because he liked feeling his presence.

There was finally a sound of movement from Ray's direction, and Kai looked over staring intently. He was ready to move Tala so he could get up and run blindly into the darkness after Ray if he had to, to make him stay with them. But Kai soon realized, as Ray's outline started to get clearer, that he might not have to run after Ray after all. Ray was coming over to him. Kai didn't know if it was to just walk past on his way to leaving him and Tala, or because he'd finally gotten sick of sitting alone. But he was a little happier knowing Ray wasn't making a run for it in the other direction.

Kai watched as Ray came over to him, stopped, looking down at him for a few seconds while he looked up, and then slowly sat down beside him, neither of them saying anything. Ray leaned his back against the tree for a few seconds before bringing his knees up and hiding his face in them. Kai didn't say or do anything. He looked away from Ray, picking up a leaf and playing with it like Tala had, and waited for him to be ready. He knew Ray would talk first if he wanted to talk, which he did a few seconds later. "Why'd you do it?" Ray asked in a whisper, his voice cracking slightly.

"Do what?" Kai asked, and was surprised when his voice came out a whisper too.

"Replace me with him, and then come down here to rub it in my face," Ray replied sounding a little hurt now, and looking over at Kai.

"I didn't," Kai told him calmly. He hated that Ray was accusing him of doing that, but he didn't want to tell him and risk a fight.

"Yes you did," Ray said sounding angry now. "I got the letter saying Tala replaced me, and a few days later you're down here with him."

"That's not why we came down," Kai told him. It was becoming harder to stay calm now. "Tala volunteered himself to take your place, but he didn't actually want to battle. He just wanted to come with me to the tournament so he could get me to come here after. But we didn't even go to the tournament. We stopped in Japan and were about to go, but turned around and came here." He didn't know why he was telling Ray all this, besides the fact that he felt he had to. He felt like he had to tell Ray, because he deserved to know the truth. Kai wanted to clear things up. He didn't want Ray being mad at him and Tala anymore, or feeling like they'd tried to hurt him.

"That still doesn't tell me why you did it," Ray told him turning his head so it was back in his knees. Kai wanted to reach out and touch Ray. To rub his back or take his hand to help him feel a little better, but he couldn't bring himself to do it. Instead he just clenched his fist, crushing the leaf in it.

"Tala already told you why," Kai said a little more bitter than he intended to sound.

"And you think I'm going to believe him without hearing it from you too?" Ray asked him sounding a little angry. Kia unclenched his fist now realizing Ray had been forcing himself to stay calm too.

"Ray," Kai started making his voice sound a little softer. "We came down here because Tala thought I needed to see you. I thought I needed to see you too."

"Why?" Ray asked demandingly looking back at Kai.

"Because...because of your letter," he told him a little shakily.

"What was wrong with it?" Ray asked, Kai could tell he was trying to sound calm again. "All I did was say I was leaving the team again. It's not like I haven't done it before." Kai nodded.

"But even the other times me and the others tried to make you come back, didn't we?" he asked. Ray nodded slowly and opened his mouth to say something, but Kai cut him off. "This time it was different though, because you sounded like you really didn't want to come back and it got to me," he told Ray in almost a whisper. "I didn't know what to do, all the other times I knew you were going to come back eventually but this time I didn't."

Ray sat there quietly biting his lip as he noticed Kai's mood drop and the sadness cross his face. He felt bad, even though he hadn't really done anything wrong, and he wanted to fix it. "I'm sorry," Ray said a little shakily and in a whisper. "I shouldn't have brought this up. I came over here because I didn't want to be alone anymore, and because Tala looked like he was done freaking out, not to get emotions running again."

"Its fine," Kai told him with a sad sigh.

"Thanks for coming after me," he said leaning against the tree trunk, his eyes instantly getting heavy. He was tired from all the things that had happened so quickly in only one day.

"You shouldn't thank me. We would have come after you even if we didn't want to, you're our only way out of here," Kai reminded him, forcing himself not to get any closer to, or touch, Ray.

"But you did want to come after me, right?" Ray asked in an almost non understandable mumble.

"Yeah," Kai replied biting his lip as he looked towards Tala. He wished it could be Ray using his shoulder for a pillow as he held his hand.

"Good," Ray mumbled and fell into a light sleep against the tree.